Gary Lineker calls for rule change after major controversy in Arsenal’s FA Cup defeat to Man Utd
GARY LINEKER has called for a rule change after Gabriel Martinelli's goal against Manchester United was disallowed.
The forward thought he had put his side 1-0 up in the FA Cup third round clash, only to see the linesman's flag raised.
Replays showed Martinelli was some yards offside with the only controversy being the fact United defender Harry Maguire had the last touch.
The England defender was deemed not to have taken a deliberate touch however, so the referee allowed the decision to stand.
Lineker discussed the incident on BBC's coverage of the clash and pointed to the rulebook to explain why the correct decision was made.
Despite agreeing with the verdict, Lineker suggested a rule change that could avoid confusion in the future.
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He said: “Now, we understand they have given that (offside) because Harry Maguire is not in control of the ball, but you could argue, of course, that he should have been.
“Here are the four things about when a player is uncontrolled. The ball travelled from a short distance or the player doesn’t have a clear view of it. Neither of those apply. The ball was moving quickly. Well, it wasn’t. The direction of the ball was unexpected. It wasn’t.
“And, the player had limited or no time to coordinate their body movement. You could possibly make an argument on that, but we understand why it’s not given.
“Now, why don’t they (the FA) just say all deflections in those circumstances are offside? Rather than this ambiguous nature of uncontrolled and controlled and all that.”
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Arsenal ratings vs Man Utd as Martinelli looks lively but wasteful Havertz costs Gunners another trophy chance
KAI HAVERTZ missed two sitters and a penalty in the shoot-out as Arsenal were dumped out of the FA Cup.
The Gunners huffed and puffed but failed to find a winner, even after extra-time, against Manchester United’s 10 men.
And it all went wrong in the penalty shootout as Altay Bayindir saved Havertz’s effort.
Here is how SunSport's Kealan Hughes rated the Arsenal stars...
DAVID RAYA - 6
Could do nothing about United's goal and produced a stellar stop to deny Zirkzee in extra-time.
JURRIEN TIMBER - 7
Very effective on the overlap and worked well being fed by Odegaard.
Tested a couple of times by Alejandro Garnacho who proved a problem on the counter-attack.
WILLIAM SALIBA - 7
Dealt with Hojlund well although the striker did not pose much of a threat.
GABRIEL - 6
Terrible error to lose possession to Alejandro Garnacho who was put through on goal and set up Bruno Fernandes to score.
Made amends with a brilliant finish Bukayo Saka would have been proud of.
MYLES LEWIS-SKELLY - 5
A quiet game at left-back, probably should have got forward more particularly after United went down to ten men and had Garnacho filling in at right-back.
JORGINHO - 5
Kept things ticking over in the middle and was always an outlet for his team-mates.
MIKEL MERINO - 4
Anonymous in the middle. Difficult to see what he brings to this Arsenal side.
Missed a good chance to put his side ahead moments after the equaliser and was taken off shortly after that.
MARTIN ODEGAARD - 7
A pleasure to watch. Made everything happen, his ability to turn on the ball in the middle of the park created opportunities time after time.
But he missed the chance to win the game from the penalty spot.
GABRIEL JESUS - 6
Lovely pass to break the lines and put through Martinelli, who found the back of the net but was offside.
Fell awkwardly when defending a cross in the first half and was carried off on a stretcher.
GABRIEL MARTINELLI - 7
Was the main attacking threat in the first half with his direct style causing the visitors all sorts of problems.
Produced good movement and a finish to match but his goal was disallowed for offside.
KAI HAVERTZ - 3
Won the penalty after a deft touch past Maguire.
But he missed two sitters including one just three minutes from time to win the match, and his penalty miss proved decisive in the shoot-out.
SUBSTITUTES
Raheem Sterling (for Jesus, 40mins) - 6
Looked sharp when he got the ball and did well in the build-up to Havertz winning the penalty.
Declan Rice (for Merino, 73mins) - 6
Almost scored with what might have been his first touch but his header was brilliantly saved.
Should have grabbed the winner in the dying moments but his low effort was again superbly matched by Bayindir.
Leandro Trossard (for Lewis-Skelly, extra-time) - 5
Will wonder how he didn't score after Matthijs de Ligt produced a goalline clearance to deny him.
Blazed over with an effort from just outside the box.
Thomas Partey (for Timber, 101mins) - 5
Put in a few good crosses. Came close to a winner with an effort that was deflected narrowly over the bar.
Kieran Tierney (for Jorginho, 113mins) -
His arrival onto the pitch was greeted with a big cheer but he did not have much time to impact the match.
There was more controversy in the FA Cup clash as Arsenal were awarded a penalty despite Maguire making minimal contact on Kai Havertz.
The Gunners missed the resulting spot-kick and after United were victorious in the penalty shoot-out, their media team tweeted: "Justice."